Sat - 17 Mar

Good Morning & Happy Saturday! As always you can find your personal referral links at the bottom. India & UAE will start cross-country CBDC trials, the digital yuan is exploding in China, and Coinbase may move some business out of the US.

👨‍✈️ India & UAE To Begin Cross-Country CBDC Pilot: On Wednesday, the RBI and the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates signed an agreement to collaborate on pilot programs related to central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). The memorandum of understanding includes exploring the interoperability between the CBDCs of the two countries, as well as jointly conducting proof-of-concept and pilot programs for a bilateral CBDC bridge to facilitate cross-border transactions of remittances and trade. It is likely that the collaboration will involve a retail CBDC for remittance handling. India has been testing a retail CBDC in 15 cities and plans to launch a digital currency by year-end. The UAE, which announced its intention to launch a CBDC in February, has launched a financial transformation program with nine parts.

🦾 Translucia Introduces 'Multiverse Convergence' To Make Web3 Accessible To All: Translucia Metaverse, a joint venture between MQDC and T&B Media Global, has introduced a unique solution called the "Multiverse Convergence" through its LightLink Protocol. According to the company, LightLink is the first enterprise Layer-2 (L2) Blockchain designed to enable traditional businesses to enter Web3 at scale. It allows businesses to enter multiple third-party metaverses easily and at a low cost, enabling them to participate in Web3. Through LightLink, different metaverses built and owned by various players can connect and integrate functionalities, opening up new avenues for trade, commerce, and collaboration between metaverse owners. Translucia aims to create a comprehensive ecosystem with metaverse elements worth $3 billion, where various Web3 ecosystems are integrated into a single "Multiverse" to help metaverse players standardize their technologies, workflow, and user experience within one platform.

🤑 China's Fujian Province Has Handled Digital Yuan Transactions Worth Almost $22 Billion: Individuals and businesses in Fujian Province, China, have processed digital yuan transactions worth almost $22 billion, indicating the rapid advancement of China's CBDC initiative. This achievement comes amidst the People's Bank of China (PBOC) prohibiting the use of other cryptos, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Three Chinese provinces declared their intention to distribute digital yuan (e-CNY) to citizens in the form of "red packets," valued at around 90 million yuan, in 2022. Official data from Fujian Province shows that citizens have spent more than $14.5 million on digital yuan transactions and nearly $9 million worth of digital yuan tokens were given out during promotional activities by the province and its collaborators. Fujin News also reported that 2,572 vendors and merchants in the province now accept digital yuan payments, including toll booths on the Fuxia (Fujian-Xiamen) Expressway, which is an essential network of highways that runs through the area.

🪂 Arbitrum To Airdrop New Token And Transition To DAO: Arbitrum, the top player in Ethereum's layer 2 scaling, is launching its own token, ARB, via airdrop to community members on March 23. ARB marks Arbitrum's transition to a DAO, giving holders voting rights over key decisions on Arbitrum One and Arbitrum Nova. These networks enable users to transact on the Ethereum blockchain with greater speed and lower fees. The token's total supply is 10 billion, with 56% controlled by the community. Eligible users will receive 11.5% of the supply, while DAOs in the ecosystem will receive 1.1%. The remaining tokens will be held in a treasury managed by the new Arbitrum DAO for voting on fund allocation.

💱 Coinbase May Build An Exchange Outside The US: Bloomberg has reported that Coinbase is considering the possibility of creating an offshore exchange as a response to the increased regulatory scrutiny that the cryptocurrency industry has been facing recently. The exchange has reportedly contacted institutional clients to discuss the potential establishment of an alternative marketplace for global users. While the exchange's location has yet to be determined, Coinbase has not confirmed these plans. However, a spokesperson for the exchange has stated that they continuously evaluate options in different regions and engage with government officials to advance crypto adoption globally. Currently, all trades on Coinbase are routed through its US platform, but if it establishes an offshore trading platform, it could protect itself from regulatory pressure at home.

What Are CBDCs?: A central bank digital currency or CBDC is a virtual currency backed and issued by a central bank. As cryptocurrencies and stablecoins have grown in popularity, central banks around the world have realized that they must provide an alternative to physical money or risk missing out on the future of money.